Present Danger (Liz Carlyle, #5) by Stella Rimington

Present Danger (Liz Carlyle, #5) Reviews

• 
  Jeff Crosby

  Liz Carlyle is now in Northern Ireland, working against splinter groups who threaten the fragile peace. The procedural nature of the novel is well paced, revealing each detail in a timely fashion. There is never any frustration level between what the reader knows and what the protagonists learn. The solid plot is fleshed out with believable characters. The lone exception is the central villan--a cypher who turns out to be more of a plot device than an individual. For my money, this is the strongest entry in the series to date.
• 
  David Medcalf

  This isn't my usual sort of book, but I was intrigued by a spy book written by an ex-spymaster.
  I'm afraid it disappointed - it was interesting in places, but full of clichéed characters [the good looking heroine, the impetuous sub-hero, the cold calculating villain, the incompetent boss], and 'lucky coincidences' to enable the plot to move clunkily forward.
  The end scene was rather "is that it?" - one had the feeling that the author had reached her required word-count and just wanted to get finished.
  I don't think I'll bother with any more in the series.
• 
  Ian

  MI5 officer Liz Carlyle is transferred to Belfast which, in the era of power sharing, should be a relatively uneventful posting. However, dissident terrorist groups threaten to disrupt the peace and Liz is soon involved in uncovering a deadly plot.
  
  You'd expect an ex-head of MI5 to know her stuff in this field and Rimington's description of spycraft is impeccable. The book feels a little slow at the start though as it fills in a lot of backstory. The pace picks up in the middle but the ending seems a little too easily resolved. There's also a romantic interest that seemed rather tacked on.
  
  This is the first time I've read one of Stella Rimington's novels and it's a decent enough thriller but lacks the 'wow factor' needed to make it stand out.
• 
  Mal Warwick

  John le Carré. Eric Ambler. Graham Greene. Ian Fleming. Len Deighton. Frederick Forsyth. Somerset Maugham. Charles Cumming. Ken Follett. Alex Gerlis. Philip Kerr. Is that enough names to make the case that the best spy novels come from Britain? (Okay, maybe just in the English language.)
  
  Not that America hasn't also contributed a fair number of top-flight espionage novelists. Joseph Kanon, Alan Furst, Alex Berenson, Martin Cruz Smith, David Ignatius, Robert Ludlum, Olen Steinhauer, and Tom Clancy all come to mind. But the sheer abundance of compelling British espionage novels presents a high bar. Perhaps the fact that the British live on small islands so vulnerable to the world around them helps to explain their evident preoccupation with danger from the outside world.
  
  Although most of the best-known British spy novelists did their best work from the 1930s to the 1980s, some are currently writing at the top of their game. Charles Cumming, Alex Gerlis, and Philip Kerr, for example. But isn't it curious that all the names I've mentioned so far, both British and American, are men? Search online for "women spy novelists," and you'll turn up a number of names, of course. Some are well known, but not for their espionage fiction. Most of the others rarely if ever make the bestseller lists.
  
  Stella Rimington is an exception. That's Dame Stella Rimington, if you please. Rimington was the first female Director General of Britain's Security Service, MI5. It's sometimes thought of as the equivalent of the FBI, but its remit (to use the British term for mission) is domestic intelligence, not criminal investigation. Rimington served as DG for five years in the 1990s. Since 2004, she has published what are now nine novels to date featuring MI5 spycatcher Liz Carlyle. To my mind, Rimington's work stacks up with that of other top spy novelists writing today.
  
  Present Danger is the fifth novel in the Liz Carlyle series. The title slyly refers to the threat posed by breakaway factions from the IRA intent on sabotaging the Ulster peace deal. (The agreement was confirmed in 1998 by referenda in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland; the book is set several years later.)
  
  MI5 has posted Liz to Belfast for what she assumes will be an uneventful time away from her work in counterterrorism and counterespionage in England. However, shortly after she arrives a police officer she'd worked with in the past is attacked outside his home by a gunman. One of several breakaway Republican groups is suspected. That suspicion is confirmed when an anonymous tipster contacts Dave Armstrong, one of the officers working for Liz. An American expatriate running one of those factions has sworn to kill a police officer and an official with MI5 in hopes of undermining the peace deal. Then Dave disappears, apparently kidnapped. Liz spearheads the investigation to rescue Dave and take down the American. The case takes her to Paris and the South of France, where she teams up with a French intelligence officer.
  
  Rimington writes with a sure hand. Her prose is unadorned but unfailingly logical and easy to read. The novel steadily gains momentum, creating suspense all along the way. Present Danger is convincing and enjoyable. Individually, Present Danger doesn't rank among the best spy novels of the last half-century. Collectively, however, the Liz Carlyle series deserves serious consideration.
• 
  Toby Oliver

  Set before the peace process was eventually signed, Liz Carlyle an MI5 officer arrives in Belfast. A colleague goes missing. Perhaps, not unexpectedly, the writing is intuitive and draws the reader into an ever increasing underworld of deceit and duplicity.
• 
  Jacki (Julia Flyte)

  This is Stella Rimington's fifth novel featuring the clever and resourceful MI5 intelligence officer Liz Carlyle. While it's a stand alone novel, you'll probably enjoy it more if you've read some of her other books as many of the characters have made previous appearances.
  
  At the start of the book, Liz Carlyle is transferred to Northern Ireland to take charge of MI5's agent runners division. Unbeknownst to her, the Director General is aware of her closeness to the recently widowed Charles Wetherby and wants to avert any potential inter-office romance. She expects to find that Northern Ireland is a backwater, but she soon discovers that there is a breakaway terrorist cell of former IRA members who want to continue the struggle by targeting policemen and members of MI5. When one of her colleagues comes under threat, she needs to quickly find answers.
  
  As a thriller it's good but not outstanding. It's a well written and enjoyable read, but the tension never builds sufficiently to put it in the "can't put down" category. The villain is also devoid of any strong motivation or believability. On the other hand, what Rimington has going for her is credibility. As the former head of MI5, she knows the details that make the story feel authentic and knowing her pedigree definitely adds to the book. For example there is one early scene when an MI5 officer is meeting with his contact and the MI5 team are providing back up surveillance. Had I read this scene in another book, I might have thought: "well it wouldn't happen that way". Knowing Rimington's background, instead I could think: "oh, so that's how they'd do it". Fascinating.
  
  I really like the way that Liz's character is developing and I thought this was one of Rimington's best yet. The romantic tension between Liz and Charles Wetherby is an ongoing sub-plot that didn't intrude on the main story but added a pleasing extra dimension. The ending wraps up the plot neatly, but leaves enough threads hanging to make it obvious that there will be another installment. I'm already looking forward to it.
• 
  Ingo

  Started December 21st, 2013.
  Interesting turn of events from the settings and personal relationship developments in the last book.
  To stop something the powers that be decide to post Liz to Ireland, which could be a boring job after peace treaty is signed.
  But it is not, old IRA resentments and long held grudged (justified or not) lead to the discovery of a plan to disrupt the peace process.
  Mistakes are made, people die, but is not entirely gripping or fast-paced enough to justify 5 stars.
  No stretch of to much personal developments either, so I settle for 4 stars.
  As usual very good, very British English, recommended.
• 
  Bob

  Three and a half stars. I liked just about everything here with no issues with the storytelling (quite good) or the writing. So while there's some good beach or fireplace espionage reading here, there's nothing above average either. I certainly wouldn't think twice about going back to Rimington when I was in the mood for some good MI-5 fiction again. The Belfast and, even more, southern France coastal settings are very well drawn.
• 
  Judith Cranswick

  Stella Rimington's writing has improved as the series has gone on. It doesn't achieve the tension or page-turning quality of the great British crime writers, and her characters are not sufficiently developed to make one empathise to any great degree. However, I do enjoy the MI5 elements of the story which is my main motive for reading her novels.
• 
  Si Straw

  Present Danger is the fifth of Stella Rimington's thrillers about the exploits of MI5 officer Liz Carlyle. As a former Director General of MI5, this a world that Rimington knows well, combining pacey action with the detailed portral of spycraft at work. Set in Belfast, Carlyle fights to protect the fragile peace against a murky world of suspicion and the threat of double cross.
  
  The book moves from a steady start building to a well written conclusion. The story is fairly conventional, so is likely to be most enjoyed by those familiar to earlier works in the series. Nevertheless. this is a good read that continues the overall arc well: a good tale worth a read.
• 
  Christine Ottaway

  Though I have read this book before, it was some time ago and I am now enjoying rereading the Liz Carlyle books in order.
  
  I hardly recalled the plot of this one but the main characters are all there with the exception of Geoffrey Fane who is given a rest in this story. The Irish setting means that occasionally the plot strays into stereotypes. Unfortunately Irish history and names are very predictable so the story runs along well oiled lines. Republican fanaticism and bitterness at the British 'occupation' of Norther Ireland provide the backbone to the plot.
  
  The finale in the south of France didn't end with Liz in pieces though she showed her usual coolness and courage under fire and all ends are neatly tied. Her new relationships are well lined up for sequels.
• 
  Scott Sharp

  This was a really good installment of this series. I'd been uncertain whether I'd continue after book 4. I'm glad i kept on. A good thriller. Different enough in plot and setting to stand out from the previous books. I have a few very minor complaints - one seems to be Dame Rimington's penchant for convenient coincidences to move a plot along. That is present again in this book, but in a more acceptable way than book 4. I'm sure ill finish the series now and be sad when it's done.
• 
  Diamond Lil

  Great espionage with the added bonus of excellent character development, and a subtle and intelligent unpacking of gender relations in senior executive management albeit the unique world of intelligence. Remington delves not only into international terrorism and state security, but also into relationships, hierarchy and the way that men and women work together.
• 
  Mike Eccles

  Clever twists and turns
  
  Despite feeling that the story started a little slowly, I was soon enveloped in the twists and turns of intrigue supported by the authors knowledge of the world of MI5. I liked the detailed descriptions of roads and places, excellent research. A tense ending emerged!
• 
  Tricia

  Fast paced plot, lots of action. Also lots of secondary characters - i found myself taking notes in case I needed to make connections later on (and it did come in handy!) Not sure how I feel about the Seurat development at the very end. And - spoiler alert! - I totally suspected Mrs Ryan was not to be trusted from the get-go.
• 
  Tracy Smyth

  This is the first book by this author that I have read. I loved it. It kept me interest from the start of the book til the end. Great story
• 
  Emma

  Best Liz Carlyle book so far! Engaging story on both the plot line and her personal life.
• 
  Liz

  I want to enjoy a good spy story but it's lazy and irritating to have every single male character have a crush on the female lead.
• 
  Kathy Morgan

  Another excellent story in this series. Stella Rimington is one of my go-to authors when I want a good mystery with intrigue and a touch of adrenaline.
• 
  Paul Servini

  Action packed pageturner which kept me riveted from beginning to enf.